Terps lineman Gonnella taken to hospital with blood clot

Don Markus

On Wednesday's regular ACC teleconference, Maryland coach Randy Edsall said that injured offensive lineman Andrew Gonnella was taken to a local hospital Tuesday night because of what doctors determined to be a blood clot in his leg.

Gonnella sustained a gruesome injury during last Saturday's 21-16 loss at Georgia Tech. He suffered a dislocated left knee and had to be taken off the field in Atlanta by ambulance to a hospital nearby for surgery.

After returning to College Park Monday night, Gonnella talked with the media on Tuesday about the injury. But Edsall said the former walk-on who became a starter and captain on this year's team suffered "a little bit of a setback" a few hours later.

"He was in my office yesterday and he's finding a way to get out on the field to play," Edsall said. "I told our doctors around 12:30 this morning, 'You've got to do something to keep him off his feet.' He's just so high-strung, a guy who loves to play the game. They might have to keep him in the hospital a little bit longer."

Edsall said that Gonnella is expected to undergo further surgery on the leg.

"His spirits are good, everything else is good. He's going to need a lot of support from all of us," Edsall said. "He's just a wonderful young man and we hope that everything goes according to how everyone thinks it will go. He's still got a tough road ahead of him."